Heading into the 2009-10 National Hockey League campaign, a pair of factors seemed to paint a less-than-promising picture for Kyle Cumiskey and the Colorado Avalanche.

For starters, every hockey pundit on the planet assumed the Avalanche were going to stink to high heaven. Colorado, after all, had waved goodbye to Joe Sakic (retirement) and Ryan Smyth (trade) in the off-season, and that was after a year where they finished last in the Western Conference with a 32-45-6 record.

If Colorado had an area of depth, though, it was on defence, with veterans like John-Michael Liles, Adam Foote, Scott Hannan, Brett Clark, Tom Preissing, Ruslan Salei and Kyle Quincey.

That didn’t seem to bode well for Avalanche blueline prospect Cumiskey, an Abbotsford native who spent the past two seasons bouncing between the AHL and NHL.

But fast-forward 19 games, and the surprising Avalanche are second in the Western Conference a 12-4-3 record. Their Cinderella story has been fashioned on the strength of unheralded players like goalie Craig Anderson, who is among the league leaders in wins (11, tied for first), save percentage (.930, third) and goals against average (2.29, 13th).

Cumiskey fits into that unheralded category as well. With Liles, Salei and Preissing missing extended time due to injury, the 22-year-old has taken full advantage of the opportunity to get into the lineup. Cumiskey has suited up for all 19 games, averaging 17:47 of ice time per contest, and notched two goals, two assists and a +2 rating along the way.

“It’s the most comfortable I’ve felt in my NHL career so far,” Cumiskey told The News via cellphone on Friday. “I’m playing decent minutes every game, and it’s exciting to be part of a team that’s winning.”

A big part of Cumiskey’s comfort level on the ice has to do with the fact he’s partnered with Foote, a 38-year-old veteran. In his heyday, the two-time Stanley Cup winner (1996, 2001) and Olympic gold medallist (2002) was considered the gold standard of defensive defencemen in the NHL.

Cumiskey, a fleet-footed five-foot-10 blueliner, has been striving to tighten up his game in the defensive zone, and in that sense, Foote is the ideal mentor.

“He gives me lots of tips and pointers, and it makes it a lot easier on the ice,” Cumiskey said of Foote. “He’s a solid defensive defenceman, so if I want to jump up (into the play), he’s backing me up.”

In 2008-09, Cumiskey had his season curtailed by a shoulder injury. But after undergoing surgery in February and putting in a lot of hard work over the summer, he succeeded in cracking Colorado’s roster out of training camp.

As for the Avalanche’s early-season success, Cumiskey said the team was motivated by predictions that they’d finish at the bottom of the league.

“We wanted to prove people wrong – everyone from the coaching staff to the players,” said Cumiskey, who had 72 NHL games under his belt prior to Saturday’s home game against the Vancouver Canucks.

AROUND THE RINK:

n Ryan Craig has been Abbotsford’s preeminent NHLer in recent years, but the Tampa Bay Lightning sent the 27-year-old forward down to the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals to start the season.

Craig made the most of his time in Norfolk, though, scoring seven goals in just 11 games, and he earned a recall to the Lightning this week. In 183 career NHL games, all with the Lightning, Craig has 32 goals and 31 assists.

n Michael Funk was off to a fine start to the AHL campaign with the Manitoba Moose, but the Abbotsford defenceman’s hockey career hit a roadblock last week.

Funk suffered a suspected concussion last Saturday on a questionable hit by Texas Stars forward Luke Gadzic. He was expected to miss at least seven days, but the bigger issue is that it’s his third concussion in just over a year.

Through 19 games this season, Funk was fourth in scoring among Moose players with seven points (one goal, six assists).